A Boost to Women’s Football
The FIFA Women’s Football World Cup, co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia, saw record crowds attending women’s matches throughout the months of July and August
Organisers were aiming for 500,000 ticket sales in New Zealand but exceeded that reaching over 700,000 with many Kiwis coming out to watch a multitude of games.
These included 5 group stage matches at FMG Stadium in Kirikiriroa-Hamilton, with matches popular with family groups as well as football fans.
With the tournament over, it asks the question, has there been an increase in participation in women’s football due to the success and skill shown at this event?
Mark Jones, teacher in charge of football at Rototuna High Schools feels there is a rising interest in the game of women’s football at the high school level.
As a teacher, Jones said the Women’s World Cup has been integrated into learning in some of the classes, and that exposure made girls curious not only about the tournament but the sport itself.
Jones said he has recently seen more girls kicking the ball around at school, or signing up to play for a school team or a club.
“Overall, the impact of the Women’s World Cup in the short term has exposed more students to football, increased its popularity and participation numbers.”
Jones’s observation on overall participation in football at high school.
A perk of being the host nation is how much New Zealanders were exposed to the true nature of women’s football which allowed people to see the real quality of the game.
Locally, Melville Football Club Women’s A team has also just been promoted to the Northern League Championship, showing a pathway through the competition. Not only are we seeing strides by our international women’s team but locally we are seeing success stories from the Melville Women’s A team.
This not only impacts girls who are interested in the sport but also for girls actively participating at higher levels of the sport.
“The biggest impact this will have on football for girls across all ages is that they can now see, if they didn’t already, a pathway that is supportive for their enjoyment, development and competitive aspirations.”
Jones on young women realising the true worth of the game.
Jones hopes that this World Cup acts as a spark to attract more numbers to the women’s teams at Rototuna Highschools and be able to field more than 2 teams throughout the schools. He is also excited to see how much the game will grow in general due to this incredible experience.
